Tech event aims to inspire kids, update parents

Luke Holley, 9, pedals away on a stationary bicycle attached to and powering an electrical generator during the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine on Sunday. Holley was trying to illuminate light bulbs with his leg power.EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Another STEM showcase

If you missed the Kid 2.0 event Sunday, Vital Link OC will be holding a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) and an arts career showcase as part of the Youth Expo at the fairgrounds April 12-14. April 12 is a field-trip day, but Saturday and Sunday are free and open to the public from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Parking is $5.

Source: vitallinkoc.org

Huntington Beach carpenter David Lee doesn't know a whole lot about working with electricity, but his father did. Something got lost between the generations – he was just never really interested – and most of the information was never passed down.

On Sunday, as David Lee leaned over his 8-year-old son, Nate, the two tried clipping wires between a battery and a bulb to generate light at the Kid 2.0 career expo Sunday at UC Irvine. They couldn't seem to get the right combination of batteries and clip placement. Nate, however, wasn't done. He made his way to the other end of the table and tried again.

Voila – the bulb lit up.

"I want him to have every opportunity he can," David Lee said.

The Lees were among hundreds of Orange County families attending the event that brought local businesses and nonprofits together at the UCI student center for hands-on exhibits designed to inspire career interests in kids as young as Nate. Kid 2.0 is meant to spotlight careers in science, technology, engineering and math for kids, and their parents, long before they're thinking even about junior high, not to mention college. More than 1,000 were estimated in attendance.

"This is something that is really important to the American economy. We need the right type of talent. We need people to have really high-paying jobs," said Noelle Nitz, who helped organize the event as a member of the Black Business Network of Orange County.

"Kids do what they see. ... How are they ever possibly supposed to become an engineer if they never see one?"

The event was almost as much about the parents, according to Kathy Johnson, an organizer with Vital Link OC, a nonprofit that coordinated Kid 2.0's exhibits. If a child expresses an interest in manufacturing, a parent might think of work on an assembly line, Johnson said, while the reality involves designing 3D objects on the computer and essentially "printing" prototypes, while mass production is largely about computer-controlled robots. That's why it's important for parents to see the demos too, she said.

"By having a common experience, it creates a conversation on the way home," Johnson said. "It's important for a parent to understand the career choice that a child picks."

Disneyland Imagineers showed off models and prototypes, such as the functional locking lap bar unit – made of a cornstarch material – representing the type used on Disneyland's Peter Pan ride. San Clemente resident Ruthe Spear was dragged to the booth by her 9-year-old twins, who had seen a special about 3D printing the night before.

How long did it take to build these items, the family wondered? They got their answer: several hours or a couple of days – depending on the material and complexity involved.

"That's what they'll remember," Spear said.

Eon Reality, an Irvine company that builds products using virtual-reality technology, had kids looking at a screen through 3D glasses. By pressing a button on the side of a penlike accessory, they could move around pieces of a floating heart in front of their eyes.

Luke Holley, 9, pedals away on a stationary bicycle attached to and powering an electrical generator during the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine on Sunday. Holley was trying to illuminate light bulbs with his leg power. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Rich Keller, of Orange, wears 3D glasses as he checks out an exhibit with sons Matthew, 4, and Patrick, 8 months, at the Eon Reality booth during the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine on Sunday. The day was intended to interest kids in science with hands-on games, science experiments and exhibitors from Orange County companies. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Lego robots finish battling each other as children watch during the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine on Sunday. The day was intended to interest children in science with hands-on games, science experiments and exhibitors from Orange County companies. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Lego robots battle each other as children watch during the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine on Sunday. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Matisyn Araiza, 7, of Huntington Beach plays with a Lego robot during the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Eleanor Dickson, 2½, checks out the PBS Parents app on an Android phone during the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Tess Risley, 6, right, joins, from left, Timothy Yuan, 10, Jalen Langie, 11, and Megan Bideau, 10, as they mix vinegar and baking soda during en exhibit at the Kid 2.0 event at UC Irvine. Langie is the co-author with her mother of a children's book, "Lena Jellie Beana Science Matters," that encourages kids to become involved in science. EUGENE GARCIA, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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